One Simple Random Act of Kindness

91 Cents. That's it. That is all I have (or rather, HAD) to my name this afternoon when I realized I was on "negative-empty" in the old gas tank and I absolutely HAD to go to my doctor's appointment on the other side of town. As many of you already know, or will come to know in rapid fashion, I am utterly addicted to the sweet, savory, all-too-satisfying drug known as "Diet Coke". Luckily, I had decided to go super-bummed out today with the sweats that were gracing my physique in a fashion that would DEFINITELY qualify me for "What Not to Wear"'s 'worst dressed list'. but as luck would have it, I had aptly chosen my Grady EMS t-shirt out of the pile of "somewhat wearable" clothes on my bedroom floor....and to my utter surprise, I realized that wearing this shirt entitled me to a free Diet Coke refill in my Big Gulp!! (yes, it is ALWAYS with me - the big Gulp, not the tshirt)...but I digress....back to the 91 cents.

I mention the Diet Coke because as luck would have it (are you catching on to the 'luck' factor in this day's post??) my air conditioning in my car has called it quits and I was fantastically sweaty and parched and definitely needed some refreshment.....FREE refreshment (Most places give free refills to cops, EMS workers, firefighters, etc).

So, with my head held low, I VERY carefully carried my 91 cents (in small change of course...pennies and nickles - it figures) into the Quik Trip to partake of my free cooling beverage and pay for all the gas I could afford - 91 cents worth. I was mortified. Where had my money gone? What kind of person pays for 91 cents of gas? Could I get away with standing outside with a very sad sign stating "Will dance a jig for gas money"? (I'm a very good Irish dancer...a little known fact...). And then, to top off this entirely mortifying experience, a very large line began to form behind me and the clerk apparently started working there, like, 2 hours earlier, because I could hear the movement of the continents going faster than his poor attempt at counting my pennies and nickles at record-slow speed. So, with approximately 200 people now behind me in line, and my head now hanging down at ankle-level, I hear a voice from behind me that said to the clerk "Here....make it $1.91...." and he slid a single dolllar bill across the counter. I was beyond touched. I turned, frantically trying to think of some excuse to give this gracious young man some sort of explanation for why I am such a loser that I only have 91 cents to my name, but before I could get a word out of my mouth (he must have seen the utter shame in my eyes), he said "Hey....not a word.....we all need a little help every now and then". The only thing I had a chance to say was 'thank you' And then he was gone....out of my life forever....
One Simple, but SO SIGNIFICANT, Random Act of Kindness....

As I walked back to the pump, watching as every last penny of that precious dollar filled my gas tank, I thought of how many countless times we have every day where WE, where *I* could do the same for my fellow man....how many times I had turned the other way, or simply been lost in my own meaningless thoughts to realize that there might be someone standing next to me who could benefit from my own random act of charity....be it a dollar, a listening ear, or even just a smile. That 1 dollar might seem small, and insignificant, to most....but here's the progression I want to explain....by giving me that dollar, this gentleman made it possible for me to see my doctor, a very important appointment that without it, I might not be able to better my very-precarious health situation....he made it possible for me to better my health, which makes me able to go to work tomorrow, and to continue going to work so that I can put food on my table, keep a roof over my head, and hopefully, in the course of my travels and life, pass on another 'random act of kindness' to another... This man didn't know my medical history...he didn't know that on most days, my health hangs "in the balance"....that my health and body have failed me many times, multiple times placing me on the brink of death....he didn't know that by enabling me to get to my doctor's office, I am for one more blessed day able to 'fight the good fight' health-wise, and able to live the beautiful, glorious, love-filled life that I have been graced with. He didn't know any of this.....and he didn't care. He just wanted to help. And for that, I will be eternally, to-the-core grateful to him.

And so, as I begin my blog-quest, trying to find meaning in all that I encounter, I dedicate this blog to that man.....and to every man, woman and child like him.....for all the people that I am blessed to encounter on my travels, as I live my "Life As A Traveler, Not a Tourist".

I chose this title because I believe in everything it stands for.....a Tourist stands back, taking pictures and never getting involved, truly involved, in the experience that seeing the world around them can encompass. A Traveler IMMERSES themselves in everything around them....the people, the culture, the idiosyncracies of a place, forgetting for a moment where you are, but rather BECOMING the place where you stand. I hope and strive to live every day of my life this way, no matter where in the world I find myself....and as you will see, I find myself in many interesting, enticing, sometimes bizarre spots around the globe. But I hope, more than all of this, that I will encompass the "Traveler Mentality" in my everyday life....here at home, here in good ol' Roswell Georgia, so that the next time I recognize a moment to act in random kindness, I will not stand idly by, but will instead act on the moment....and slide that dollar bill across the counter to a stranger. I can only hope.....